Concentration dataset for 4 essential and 5 non-essential elements in fish collected in Arctic and sub-Arctic territories of the Nenets Autonomous and Arkhangelsk regions of Russia

The raw concentration data for the research article entitled “Essential and non-essential trace elements in fish consumed by indigenous peoples of the European Russian Arctic” (Sobolev et al., 2019) [1] are herein presented. Fifteen fish species were collected in the Nenets Autonomous and Arkhangelsk Regions of the Russian Federation and were analysed for 9 elements (As, Cd, Co, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Se and Zn). The sampling sites were located in the European parts of the Russian Arctic and sub-Arctic territories. Within these territories, Nenets indigenous peoples commonly catch and consume local fish. Based on questionnaire data, local fish sources constituted ∼ 90% of the total fish consumed by endemic individuals living in these regions. The data summarized in this publication fill a gap in knowledge.


a b s t r a c t
The raw concentration data for the research article entitled "Essential and non-essential trace elements in fish consumed by indigenous peoples of the European Russian Arctic"   [1] are herein presented. Fifteen fish species were collected in the Nenets Autonomous and Arkhangelsk Regions of the Russian Federation and were analysed for 9 elements (As, Cd, Co, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Se and Zn). The sampling sites were located in the European parts of the Russian Arctic and sub-Arctic territories. Within these territories, Nenets indigenous peoples commonly catch and consume local fish. Based on questionnaire data, local fish sources constituted~90% of the total fish consumed by endemic individuals living in these regions. The data summarized in this publication fill a gap in knowledge. © 2019 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons. org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Data
Samples were collected within the Russian Arctic and sub-Arctic territories and the locations are indicated in Fig. 1. Fish species were selected with the guidance of a food-intake questionnaire administered during May 2017 to July 2018. Details about the average quantities of fish species consumed based on the questionnaire results are summarized in Table 1, while the relative contributions of various fish species to the total consumption are provided in a pie-chart format in Fig. 2. The Specifications Table   Subject Environmental Science (General) Specific subject area Intake of essential and toxic elements from locally harvested fish Type of data Tables and charts How data were acquired Questionnaire and inductively coupled plasma mass-spectrometry (ICP-MS) Aurora Elite (Bruker Daltonik GmbH, Bremen, Germany) Data format Raw and analysed data Parameters for data collection The researchers bought fish from local indigenous fishermen that were frozen immediately at À20 C, refrigerated and then transported to Arkhangelsk. A detailed questionnaire was administered to a local indigenous population in 2017e2018 Description of data collection Homogenized freeze-dried fish muscles were digested by 5 ml of concentrated nitic acid using a hot-block system at 105 C, and were subsequently analysed by Value of the Data The comprehensive raw data set presented has not been reported previously. These data will be helpful for researchers involved in nutritional and general health assessments and related research. The data also help to identify potential dietary sources of essential and non-essential elements for indigenous communities in the European Russian Arctic/Subarctic. Our findings supplement those of pan-Arctic biomonitoring studies, and are suitable for inclusion in pertinent reports/ overviews.     raw data used to generate Table 1 and Fig. 2 are provided as Supplementary Material, as well as an English template of the questionnaire in Russian used. The raw elemental data measured in fish and examined in our recent article [1] are tabulated in Table 2. As these are to be updated later and due to the extent of the data, a Mendeley Data repository was created [2]. The data set will remain publicly available to local populations and authorities/agencies and is to be complemented by future field and analytical activities. It includes the following information: the age and weight of the fish, sampling dates, geographic coordinates and concentrations of Hg, As, Se, Cd, Pb, Co, Ni, Cu and Zn measured in muscle tissues. The moisture content of each sample was determined during the freeze-drying step and this permitted the expression of the elemental concentrations in mg/kg or mg/kg wet-weight (ww). Table 2 also features data for the fish species that were not included in the companion paper due to the small number of fish samples.

Study area description
Three villages (Krasnoe, Nelmin-Nos and Indiga) with a combined total population of 3059 and of whom~65% identified themselves as Nenets constituted the study sites. These villages are located on the shore of the Barents Sea, and the latter constitutes their primary food source. Based on our questionnaire information, the average total fish consumption by the study population was approximately 57 kg/year. Generally speaking, fish are caught predominantly at near-shore locations and by the indigenous people themselves.

Sample collection, preparation and analysis
Fish samples collected for analysis were bought from local fishermen on the same day they were caught. Sample collection spanned the period May 2017 to July 2018. The sampling sites for the fish species analysed are depicted in Fig. 1 and are also specified in Table 2. The names and geographic locations of the sampling sites and subsites are indicated in the Specifications Table above; see the project's data repository for additional information [2]. The coordinates for the sampling collection sites were noted and provided by the fisherman. The most common fish species consumed were identified by the responses to the mentioned questionnaire. The participants (n ¼ 150) were drawn from the villages of Krasnoe, Indiga and Nelmin-Nos and the mentioned questionnaire was administered by the researcher to obtain pertinent information about what type of fish species and quantities they consumed every month. The data on the amount and type of fish commonly eaten by the participants are presented in a pie-chart in Fig. 2. To calculate the annual average fish consumption (wet-weight) for each participant interviewed, the total monthly intake by the entire study cohort was first calculated. The latter was subsequently divided by the number of participants and then multiplied by 12.
For the analyses, 0.25 g of homogenized/freeze-dried fish muscle samples were treated with 5 ml concentrated nitric acid in 50 ml PP tubes, and subsequently were diluted to 25 ml and analysed by ICP-MS. The limit of quantification for the elements were estimated as: Hg (1.0); As (35); Se (18); Cd (0.030); Pb (0.30); Co (1.0); Ni (1.1); Cu (4.0) in mg/kg, and Zn (0.020) mg/kg of wet-weight. Full details of the sample preparation procedures, fish age determination and ICP-MS analyses have been provided in the companion paper [1].